Ever since I was little I've heard voices in my head... I never told anyone I talked to them openly when I was a child, but recently they hear me if I think hard enough. I talked to them openly until about a month or two ago when my mom said I was too old for imaginary friends. When I replied that they weren t imaginary, they were invisible, my mother yelled at me and told me not to talk like that...

She also sent me to weekly checkups with the school s child psychologist. Today was one of those days... As I walked down the hall timidly the other teens stared at me and poked their usual fun at Azazel Lasangria, the schizophrenic psychopath in the eleventh grade. I don t mind being called crazy or a weirdo freakazoid emo who wears guy clothes and is as flat-chested as a schoolboy in appearance. But I hate it when they all stare at me... Note my multicoloured - probably dyed since birth - hair, big - iris less eyes, black pointed nails, blueish-gray tinted skin and pearly - metallic - sharp teeth.

Now that I was in the shrink s office I was mostly safe from the stares... MOSTLY! Even the adults here stare at me... If anyone ever caught me changing for gym class they would see my blue-black skeletal tail which I wrap around my waist or it's matching spiky spine cover, both of which appeared about five years ago. Quite painfully too might I add! I lay down on the sofa and ignore my aching tail and back. The shrink stares at me asks "How are you, miss Lasangria?" I hate when people call me that... Curse this catholic school and it s hatred of my name. Curse mom for naming me after the devil. And curse this shrink and his toupee wearing fat head, huge glasses that make his eyes look like saucers, wide body and cheap suit...

I shrug off my inner anger and state emotionlessly "Bored..." He nods and asks "Are you still hearing them, the voices?" I nod and shut my eyes to avoid eye contact "On and off... They change occasionally, but they all have names. They tell me things, about me and themselves... I like hearing them, it makes me relax and feel at home..." He looks slightly disturbed for the split second I open my eyes. He changed his face to one of understanding, thinking I didn't catch him thinking I'm genuinely crazy.
Do you talk to them? I think a bit and reply "Not out loud most of the time... The girl voice, Elizabeth, taught me how to think so they can hear it too... She called it 'hive-mind' and now I always talk to them using it..." The fat man nodded again and wrote something down before speaking again "Do you talk to them often? And you said the voice changes, how does it change?" I sneer and answer "I'm always tuned in, that's the thing with hive-mind, you hear them constantly unless you forcefully tune them out. And the speaker changes lots Elizabeth, Stephen, Bobby, Seth and Alexander are the most common ones. But sometimes others talk too, I don't know most of them as well though..." The shrink checked the clock and wrote something down quickly. "One last thing, what do they say miss Lasangria?" I smile as I tune in and space from the world around me... "They call me sister, Elizabeth mother and their home the hive... Right now Alex and Steve are talking about some sort of monster coming in a few days... They're warning me about it and saying to be prepared for it..." At that I smell him sweating nervously. He's thinking 'This girl isn't just schizophrenic, she's insane!' He passes me a bottle of new crazy pills to add to my collection.

My bathroom might as well be a friggin pharmacy at this point! I have to take these new ones twice a day to keep me from hearing the 'imaginary' voices... They've already drugged me with every anti-depressant, anti-psychotic, anger management, sleeping medication, tranquilizer, medication and emotional control pill know to man so why not try one more before putting me in a strait jacket and sending me to the crazy house!